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Monday, April 3, 2017

Chapter 328 I have something for you

Sophie
watched in amazement as her mother was given gift after gift from Victor’s kids. Georgiana especially was so anxious that Violet might not like
her handmade gift that Sophie thought the little girl would burst into tears if
her mother was anything less than effusive in her thanks.

Violet did NOT disappoint.
She gave hugs and kisses aplenty making an undue fuss over each gift and making
each child feel as if their gift alone was the best thing she’d ever received.

Violet
looked up at Victor and he smiled. “Georgiana helped pick out
the perfect one for you,” he said.

Violet
lifted the lid of the box, folded back the pink tissue paper within and gasped.
“Oh, this is perfect,” she said, brushing her fingertips on the plush heart print fabric
of the footie PJs.“I’m always so cold, so this is wonderful!”

“Can we have a pajama party,
Daddy?” Peter asked, switching gears faster than NASCAR. “Now Viowet has PJs she can come too.”

Violet assiduously avoided
eye contact with Victor at this point and reached for another gift to unwrap.

Sophie couldn’t help feeling inadequate as a daughter, not after seeing these kids
in action. She sighed and vowed to start showing a bit more appreciation for
her mother.

“Sophie?”

She
turned and smiled at Ronnie. “Hi,” she said.

“I have something for you,” he said. “A Christmas present.”

She
noticed his empty hands and gave him a curious look.

“It’s in my dad’s study,” he said and led the way.

Sophie
walked with a bit of apprehension into the same room she and Rance had occupied
the night before. Would Ronnie also tell her something with the potential to
turn her world upside down? Somehow, she doubted it, although she might not
have minded anything coming from Ronnie.

“Come sit,” Ronnie said, indicating the couch. He then went
to the desk and grabbed a big plain white box with a loopy tartan bow wrapped
around it. He sat on the coffee table facing her, placed it beside Sophie and
said, “Merry Christmas. Hope you like it.”

“Wow, it’s heavy,” she said, slipping the
ribbon off the box and lifting the lid. She stared at the black box within and
opened that one, too. Then her mouth fell open. “Omigod….”

“It’s the one you liked at the shooting range,” Ronnie said, nervously wiping his sweaty palms on his pants.

“Yeah, I see that,” she said. “So, that’s why you took us to the
range?”

“Well, it wasn’t just me. I talked to my dad and he thought the same as me…that it was a good idea ‘cause you’re gonna be living in the city and going to Columbia and everything
so…” Ronnie said. “My dad also got you a membership to his shooting club, so you can practice and get your CCW and…”

“My what?” she said lifting the Glock carefully from its case. This model fit
well in her small hand. She noticed that what made the box truly heavy was the
boxes of ammo tucked all the way around the black case.

“A concealed carry permit.
You don’t hafta get it, but Dad thought it was a good idea. It’s a real pain in the ass to get one in New York, but well worth it,” he said with a shrug. “I know you’re not allowed to carry at the school but…they don’t have to know, do they?”

Sophie
looked up at him for a full minute, then back down at the gun.

“We didn’t want anything to happen to you, especially ‘cause... well, you kinda freaked me out that you’re resigned that something would
happen. So, I figured you should have something to make you feel empowered and…It’s no way to live, Sophie, all scared about…bad stuff,” he said. “Although, if you’re living with a group of guys, you know, your band, I’d like to think they’d protect you from anything, but what if you’re alone, you know? Just walking down the street or something. You
can’t count on always having somebody there to protect you in case…whatever.”

Ronnie
knew he was rambling, but he couldn’t stop himself from giving
her every possible reason for her to have this weapon. He expected her to shake
her head and give it back at any moment. “Please, don’t be mad at me or my dad and think that we’re trying to run your life or anything. I just wanted to give you something
you really could use to keep you safe…help you stay safe and… Please say something, Sophie.”

She carefully replaced the
Glock in its case and closed it over, emotions building up until they spilled
out of her eyes and splashed down on the black case.

“Oh, shit,” Ronnie muttered, getting down on his knees in front of her. “You hate it.”

She shook her head and just
when he thought she would refuse the gift and toss it back at him, she instead threw
her arms around his neck, surprising him that such a slim girl could have such
a strong grip. Though in the back of his mind he knew this was just about the
time for Simon to show up and ruin things, Ronnie didn’t care. He wrapped his arms around her and cherished the feel of her
body against his. He’d have only this chance simply because he’d never get to do it again...he shouldn’t want to do it again.

He smiled. “No worries. I love the Rangers,” he said, pulling her
closer.

“This means you care about
me, at least a little,” she said.

“Of course I do,” he said gruffly. “I’m not giving up on us being family some day.”

Her heart lept and she
pulled back slightly to look into his eyes. “Really?” she said, all her nearly abandoned hopes jumping to the forefront
again.

“You…you still don’t think it’s a good idea…your mom and my dad getting married?” he said, overwhelmingly
aware of how close her lips were to his and fighting the urge to close the gap.

She seemed to melt before
him, her arms slipping down from around his neck and her body leaned away. She
shook her head.

“They love each other, you
know,” he said, now almost angry. He got up from the floor and sat on the
couch with the box between them. A solid barrier they both needed.

“I know. I saw your brothers
and sister with Mom just now. They all belong together,” she said. “That’s why I should go away, leave Catalpa Valley, so
my mom can just move on. I know it’s my fault. She won’t go on with her life cuz of me. They’d probably be married by now if not for me.”

“Whaddaya mean? You’re just gonna work on an album with your band you mean?”

“Um… no. Invasive Species is done,” she said.

“Why?” Ronnie said, stunned. “You were doing so great in
Florida!”

“And we shoulda stayed there,
but…” she sighed. “Too many things happened all at once, none of them
good. Elian quit and joined his brothers’ band. John now has to take
care of his dying mother and then raise his brother and sister when she’s gone. Danny decided to move back to Nashville and just write song
for Luke Bryan or whoever. And
Rick got together with some army buddies and started a bodyguard business. It’s just done and it sucks!”

“So…what are ya gonna do in the city, if you’re not going to college and you don’t have a band anymore?”

“Well…I got an internship at Mr. Van Gholston’s company,” she said, biting her bottom lip. “I’m supposed to go work for them, or with them,
learning directly from him.”

“Holy crap, that’s amazing!” Ronnie said. “My mother would have killed
to get something like that for me.”

“So, you think it’s a good thing?” she asked. “Would you take it?”

“Well…we’re very different, Sophie. What’s good for you might not be right for me, ya know? Actually, I’m sure it’s not.”

“I don’t think we’re that different,” she said, defensively.

“You don’t seem too happy about this job,” he said. “You’d be working with your friend, Rance…Bug, whatever his name is?”

“Yeah, but I’m not sure if that’s a good thing,” she said, biting down on
her lip again.

“Well, you don’t have to take it, if you don’t want to,” he said a bit too eagerly. “You could still just go to
school. Is that what you want?”

She
shrugged. “Dunno what I want. Not sure what this job is about, what I’ll get to do or if I can do it or even if I’ll like it,” she said, but her thoughts were on Rance’s other offer and whether she should tell Ronnie about it. She decided
against it.

“I’m sure you’ll do great, whatever you
decide. It’s an awesome opportunity, but so is college if you try and learn
something valuable… whatever you want to do,” Ronnie said, putting the lid back on the box. “Anyway, um… if you want somebody to go with you to the
shooting range, just give me a call, okay?”

She
laughed half-heartedly. “Oh, sure, you’re gonna go into the city
all the way from Catalpa Valley just to go shooting with me,” she said.

“Don’t have to. I’ll be living in the city
right after New Years. I got a job, too,” Ronnie said.

Her
eyes widened. “You did? Where? What are ya gonna do?”

Looking
distinctly uncomfortable, he cleared his throat. “Promise not to laugh?”

She
grinned. “How can I promise not to laugh without knowing if it’s funny or not?” she said. “I’m not Simon, you know. Just tell me.”

“No, I won’t, but, Ronnie,” she said, reaching her
hands out to place them on either side of his face. “This is awesome! You’ll be great.”

Without much warning, Sophie
pulled him forward and planted a soft, slow kiss on his lips. She sighed and
smiled as she pulled away from him. “This is the usual time for
Simon to burst in and stop us,” she whispered. “Is he shirking his duties of
annoying older brother just cuz it’s Christmas?”

Astonished that her thoughts
were the same as his, Ronnie shook his head. “Uh…” he said, shaking the tremendously fantastic feeling of her lips
ever-so-briefly on his and making a grand effort to think of anything except
how to get her to do that again. “I don’t think Simon’s home. He drove separately to
church and I thought it was because he couldn’t stand the kids’ chatter, but he musta gone somewhere…like to see a friend or
something.”

“You don’t think…Cassandra?” she said, letting her hands fall away from his face. “I mean…her father did NOT want him ever to see her again,
so…he wouldn’t go over and cause her trouble…not on Christmas day!”

Ronnie frowned. “He wouldn’t be crazy enough to do that…would he?”

Sophie
shrugged just as a knock came at the door. “Oh, that must be him now.
Nothing to worry about,” she said, visibly relieved.

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Violet’s in Bloom is set in modern times in a fictitious small town, Catalpa Valley in upstate New York. The story centers around three people, one desperate for love and family, the other just as desperately holding onto the past and the ghost who unwittingly stands in their way.

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